


anything please, except for defeat

by LugianBeforeSwine



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: FHQ AU, M/M, characters to be added as they appear, i don't even know what this is i just know i really wanted to write it, kind of, serious events mixed with wacky hijinks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-28
Updated: 2017-01-07
Packaged: 2018-04-23 18:33:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4887445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LugianBeforeSwine/pseuds/LugianBeforeSwine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Knight Iwaizumi is sent by his king, the Lord Kageyama, to investigate the kingdom of Aobajousai and their allegedly evil ruler, Oikawa. Nobody thought to mention that Oikawa is also cheerful, charismatic, and ridiculously attractive, though, and now Iwaizumi is in way over his head.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

There were both perks and downsides to being a high-ranking knight in the court of King Kageyama. The pay was good, the meals were certainly nothing to complain about, and each knight was allotted a private room inside the castle walls. The primary disadvantage of knighthood was that one could suddenly find themselves dead at nearly any moment, especially given Kageyama’s propensity for accidentally offending foreign diplomats. All things considered, though, Iwaizumi was glad to hold the position of second-in-command. Kageyama’s head knight, Aone, was extremely good at his job, and also a decent person; Iwaizumi didn’t mind receiving orders from him at all. In addition, although he had a vast amount of respect for his king, he didn’t envy Aone’s perpetual task of accompanying Kageyama everywhere he went; it just allotted Aone so little freedom.

In the morning, Iwaizumi awoke to a sharp rap on his door, repeated three times. When he opened his eyes, it was still dark in the room, and he hurried out of bed, thinking something dire must have happened. When he opened the door, a servant was standing there, wringing his hands nervously.

“Iwaizumi, sir,” the servant said, bowing hurriedly, “the king has requested your presence in the dining hall. He has some urgent news for you.”

“Thank you,” Iwaizumi said, reaching for his shoes and jacket, grateful to be wearing pajama pants to bed instead of those weird gowns that some of the other knights wore. He swept past the servant, jogging down the corridor towards the dining hall. He honestly didn’t mean to be dramatic, but when he pulled the ornate gold handle, the enormous door swung open and hit the opposite wall with a loud crash.

“Umm,” Iwaizumi said, bowing deeply to his king, “my Lord.”

“I’m afraid I have some terrible news,” Kageyama said as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Iwaizumi slunk up the long table and took his seat next to Aone. It was only the three of them in the room. “It has been reported to me that the kingdom of Nekoma was recently attacked by a large horde of violent men. Storehouses were destroyed and their contents stolen, fields were burned, and a good number of citizens were injured during the raid. Fortunately, there were no casualties, but obviously much has been lost. Lord Kuroo has a strong suspicion as to which kingdom the culprits belong to, but since many of his best men were injured in the attack, he does not have an adequate force with which to invade the nation.” Kageyama paused and took a deep breath. Iwaizumi didn’t like where this was going. He chanced a peek up at Aone’s face, but it was set in a look of steely determination, like usual.

“Since Nekoma has long been a trading partner and an ally to us, I have offered to assist Lord Kuroo in his mission to seek out justice for his citizens. Iwaizumi,” Kageyama said, staring pointedly at him, “this morning, you will undertake the largest and most challenging task I have ever assigned to you.” Iwaizumi stared straight into his king’s eyes, waiting for his orders. Although he was nervous, there was nothing like the adrenaline rush that came from being assigned a potentially dangerous job to make one forget their anxieties. “You are to infiltrate the kingdom of Aobajousai, alone, in disguise, and become a servant of the Lord Oikawa.”

Iwaizumi could hardly believe what he was hearing. “My Lord,” he began incredulously, “Oikawa is known for being a most sadistic and ruthless king. I’ve heard stories of him beheading servants for folding his shirts incorrectly! I’ll never make it out of there alive!”

“Iwaizumi, I would watch your tone if I were you. I am giving you this mission because I trust you. Aobajousai is not known for its freedoms, this is true, but we cannot allow this injustice committed against Nekoma to go unpunished. You are to get close to Lord Oikawa and deliver me information on him. Then I will determine what our next move should be.”

“My Lord,” Iwaizumi said, quickly standing and bowing deeply. He certainly didn’t want to offend his king, or make him think that he was unworthy of completing such an important mission. “I will serve you with my life.”

Kageyama smirked, which was always mildly terrifying to behold. It was the look he got when things appeared to be going his way, which, incidentally, is why no one ever wanted to play chess against him. “Very good, Iwaizumi. You are to be disguised as a blacksmith looking for work in the kingdom. Surely at least that should be easy for you?”

Iwaizumi nodded. His father had been a blacksmith, and had passed the trade on to his son. Prior to becoming a knight, Iwaizumi had put in many tiring hours in his father’s workshop, and was still known throughout the kingdom of Karasuno for being one of the best in the business. “Of course, my Lord.”

“Then pack your bags and saddle your horse. You will leave at sunrise. The journey is nine days. Write to me as soon as you arrive in the city.”

An hour later, as Iwaizumi watched the castle of Karasuno grow smaller and smaller behind him, fear settled in his chest and refused to be banished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea when I'll next update this but THANKS SO MUCH to everyone who read this first chapter. I haven't written anything at all in over 3 months and it feels so good to put my work out there again.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> haha hey does anyone remember this fic?? it only took me 16 months to update it hhhhh i'm terrible and i'm sorry and i love you all a lot

Nine days had never seemed so long. After the first day, Iwaizumi began riding during the evening and continuing on through the night, stopping in the mid-morning in order to avoid the heat of the day and prevent his horse from exhaustion. There were stables attached to many of the inns on the route to Aobajousai, and Iwaizumi was more than happy to pay the small extra fee that allowed his horse a private stall with fresh hay and water. While his horse recovered, Iwaizumi would take a room at the inn and sleep, and then just before sunset, he would purchase a meal from the inn’s kitchen and eat while he rode through the night.

The night before he was due to arrive in the kingdom of Aobajousai, Iwaizumi finally saw the lights as he crested a large hill. The lights were Aobajousai’s best-kept secret: thousands upon thousands of orbs decorated the streets, shops, and houses. The orbs appeared to glow from the inside, but they were not hot to the touch; many of them had been stolen by visiting citizens of other kingdoms so that they could be studied and replicated, but no person who lived outside Aobajousai’s walls had ever been able to solve the mystery. Since a light without fire was impossible, most people believed that the orbs were powered by magic. Iwaizumi didn’t know what to believe, other than that even from a great distance, the lights were beautiful.

“You see that, boy?” Iwaizumi whispered to his horse. “That’s where we’re headed. We’re almost there.” Despite the anxiety sitting heavily in his gut, something about seeing the kingdom itself was almost calming. At least the traveling would soon come to an end. Iwaizumi gently nudged his horse, and they continued on.

Iwaizumi reached the kingdom’s gates shortly before sunrise, and as a guard dressed in the colors of Aobajousai approached him, Iwaizumi squared his shoulders and set his jaw. Despite his worn civilian clothing and messy, unkempt hair, he was still a knight of Karasuno, bound to serve his king, and he was determined to complete this mission. Failing here would mean returning with nothing, and Iwaizumi would never forgive himself for that.

His horse let out a deep sigh, and Iwaizumi heard a distinct plopping noise.

_Oh no._

The Aobajousai guard who was now standing next to Iwaizumi’s horse stared from Iwaizumi to his horse’s rear end and back again.

The plopping stopped. It was silent. Iwaizumi cleared his throat.

“ _Gods!_ ” the guard barked, letting out a howl of laughter that seemed to echo across the valley behind them. “Oh! That was the funniest shit I’ve seen in a long time!” He clutched his stomach, doubled over chortling. He picked his head up long enough to add “Literally!” and then dissolved back into laughter. Unless Iwaizumi’s eyes had deceived him, the guard was crying a little.

What the hell had Iwaizumi gotten himself into?

“Umm, sir,” he tried.

The guard looked up at him and wiped his eyes with his sleeve, grinning. “I’m sorry, traveler, I’m sorry. That was inappropriate and all. It’s just, the timing—hoo!” He wiped his eyes one more time. “Couldn’t ask for better timing than that. First step onto our great kingdom’s soil and—anyway, anyway. What’s your business here, sir?”

Iwaizumi was ordinarily quite an elegant speaker, but after what had just happened, his brain was a little shaken up. “I…I am a blacksmith, sir. I come to seek work.”

“Ahh,” the guard said. “Nothing going on where you’re from?”

“There is not as much work as there once was,” Iwaizumi said carefully. “I come from a small village on the outskirts of Karasuno, you see, and many people are moving closer to the city center, and taking their horses with them.”

“So why not follow the horses?”

Iwaizumi paused. This jovial guard was giving him a bit of a hard time after all his jokes had been made. “I have…personal reasons for leaving the kingdom,” Iwaizumi finally said, hoping the guard was at least enough of a gentleman not to pry.

“Ahhhh,” the guard drawled knowingly, shooting Iwaizumi a disgusting wink. “It’s about a woman, isn’t it?”

Iwaizumi opened his mouth, to say what, he didn’t know, but the guard beat him to it.

“Now, now, a man’s business is his own. I won’t demand an explanation, so don’t worry. I’m just…” he narrowed his eyes and smirked. “Shootin’ the shit, as it were.”

Iwaizumi could not believe this was happening right now. He didn’t know what sort of facial expression he was making, but apparently it further placated the guard, because he snorted out a laugh and patted Iwaizumi’s horse’s shoulder.

“Nice horse you got here. Excellent manners. Very handsome. Anyway, good luck with the work. Plenty of horses here, lots of business, I’m sure. Off you go.” And the guard gestured out in front of them toward a path into the city.

“Thank you, sir,” Iwaizumi said, bowing a little, and then he took his first steps into the kingdom of the enemy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter: oiks and more mood whiplash!!


End file.
